Amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan following the surgical strikes, Union Home Minister said the entire stretch of 3,323 km border would be “completely sealed” by December 2018, for which a time-bound action plan would be formulated.

Mr. Singh said the procedure for sealing the international border would be developed in a planned manner.

A mechanism would be put in place for periodic monitoring “by Home Secretary at the Central level, BSF from the security forces perspective and Chief Secretaries at the State level.”

Mr. Singh said the government would apply technological solutions for sealing the border in difficult terrains. A border security grid would also be formed, with guidelines to be framed with suggestions from all stakeholders in the border areas.

A notification would be issued after inputs from the Chief Ministers, Home Secretaries and Directors-General of Police, he added.

EIGHTY PERCENT OF THE JAN DHAN YOJANA NOW HAVE BALANCE

Eighty percent of the 240 million new bank accounts created under the Narendra Modi government’s Jan Dhan Yojana now have balance in them, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said.

Mr. Jaitley was participating in a panel discussion at the World Bank on financial inclusion and de-risking or measures to prevent the illicit use of the banking system.

The Ministers of India, Indonesia, treasury secretary of the U.S. and the Governor of the People’s Bank of China who were part of the panel along with World Bank President represented 43 per cent of the world population and 40 per cent of unbanked adults.

Mr. Kim said the progress made by India in financial inclusion is a model that is inspiring for the rest of the world. Other speakers also lauded India’s progress in financial inclusion.

The Supreme Court stayed the commercial release of Genetically Modified (GM) mustard crop till October 17, and asked the Centre to seek public opinion before releasing the variety for cultivation purpose.

A Bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justice A.M. Khanwilkar was assured by the Centre that there would be no commercial release of the GM seeds till October 17 until the views of the public were collected and placed before the appraisal committee.

Mustard is one of India’s most important winter crops sown between mid-October and late November.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for Aruna Rodrigues, alleged that the Centre was sowing the seeds in various fields and said the entire bio-safety dossier had not been published.

plea urged the court to prohibit open field trials and the commercial release of Herbicide Tolerant (HT) crops, including HT Mustard DMH 11 and its parent lines/variants, as recommended by the Technical Expert Committee (TEC) report.

The plea also said the contamination caused by the mustard HT DMH 11 and its HT parents would be “irremediable and irreversible damage.”

NGT WANTS UP, HARYANA AND OTHER STATES TO BRING CNG

The National Green Tribunal warned of halting State transport in four northern States if they did not introduce CNG, saying most particulate matters in the air inhaled by Delhiites emanated from there.

“I am being told that over 50 per cent of pollution in Delhi is caused by fine particulate matter which originates from neighbouring States.

The air quality in Delhi is getting worse. You should take every measure to introduce CNG stations in your States. If you don’t introduce CNG in your State, we will stop your State transport,” a Bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said.

The Tribunal directed senior officials from Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, besides officers of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board, to appear before it on October 19, the next date of hearing.

The NGT in September had asked Uttar Pradesh and Haryana governments to mull over the possibility of installing CNG stations in NCR while refusing to grant permission to over 10-year-old diesel vehicles to ply in these areas.

On July 18, the green panel directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to cancel the registration of all diesel-powered vehicles which are more than 10 years old.

After de-registration, the authorities will issue public notice in this regard and supply the list of such vehicles to the traffic police to take appropriate steps in consonance with directions of the tribunal, it had said.

:: INTERNATIONAL ::

COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT JUAN MANUEL SANTOS WON THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos won the Nobel Peace Prize for his “resolute” efforts to end more than five decades of war in his country, despite voters’ shock rejection of a historic peace deal.

The award was unexpected after voters rejected the terms of the landmark accord Mr. Santos clinched last month with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) leader Rodrigo Londono.

The Norwegian Nobel committee rewarded Mr. Santos for his resolute efforts to bring the country’s more than 50-year-long civil war to an end.

The deal, signed on September 26 after nearly four years of talks, was supposed to be ratified following an October 2 referendum but voters shot down the agreement, leaving the country teetering between war and peace.

The Colombia conflict has claimed more than 260,000 lives and left 45,000 missing over five decades, drawing in several Leftist guerilla groups, right-wing paramilitaries and drug gangs.

:: BUSINESS AND ECONOMY ::

INDIA’S FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES SCALED TO A NEW HIGH

India’s foreign exchange reserves scaled a new high of $371.99 billion, up $1.223 billion for the week to September 30, as per the Reserve Bank data.

The increase was on account of a $1.468-billion surge in the foreign currency assets. In the previous week, the reserves had risen by $1.166 billion to $370.766 billion.

Previously, they had touched a high of $371.279 billion in the week to September 9. Foreign currency assets which are a major component of the overall reserves surged by $1.468 billion to $346.71 billion, the Reserve Bank said.

With the government expected to receive about Rs.32,000 crore in the current fiscal as upfront payment for the spectrum sold in the recently concluded auctions, Telecom Secretary said the Telecom Ministry is on course to meet its budgetary target.

As per the Budget documents, the revenue target from the telecom sector this fiscal is Rs.98,994.93 crore. Mr. Deepak said the figure agreed to between the two ministries was Rs.70,000 crore, which they will be able to meet.

Experts had pointed out that the ministry is unlikely to meet its budget target as premium 700 MHz band saw no demand, leading to revenues of Rs.65,789 crore for the government as against spectrum worth Rs 5.6 lakh crore put on sale.

The 700 MHz spectrum was alone worth about Rs.4 lakh crore.

As per the Union Budget 2016-17, the government is expected to raise at least Rs.64,000 crore from the auction of about 2,354.55 megahertz (MHz) of spectrum and a total of Rs.98,995 crore from various levies and services in the telecom sector in the current financial year.

The spectrum auction started on October 1 and ended on October 6, wherein about 965 megahertz (MHz) was sold out of 2,300MHz on offer.

The government will only collect about Rs.32,000 crore in the current financial year as the rest will be spread over a period of 10 years after a 2-year-moratorium.

:: IMPORTANT DETAILED NEWS ::

WORLD'S LARGEST SOLAR POWER PLANT OPENS IN KAMUTHI, TAMIL NADU

Adani Green Energy (Tamil Nadu) Ltd dedicated the world’s largest solar power plant of 648 megawatts to the nation.

The plant has been set up with an investment of around 4550 crore rupees at Kamuthi in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu.

About Kamuthi Solar Power Project

• Kamuthi Solar Power Project is a solar photovoltaic power generating station at Kamuthi.

• About 8500 personnel worked on average installing about 11 MW in a day to set up the plant in stipulated time.

• The entire 648 MW is now connected to the Kamuthi 400 KV substation of Tantransco.

WORLD BANK REAPPOINTS JIM YONG KIM FOR SECOND TERM AS PRESIDENT

Executive Directors of the World Bank agreed unanimously to reappoint Jim Yong Kim to a second five-year term as President of the World Bank Group, beginning 1 July 2017.

The Board noted that in the first year of Kim’s leadership, which began in July 2012, shareholders endorsed two ambitious new goals for the institution. They were: Elimination of extreme poverty by 2030, and Promotion of shared prosperity. These new initiatives boosted the income growth of the bottom 40 percent of the population in every developing country.

About Jim Yong Kim

• Jim Yong Kim is a South Korean-American physician and anthropologist.

• He has been serving as the 12th President of the World Bank since 1 July 2012.

• He was formerly the Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

• He also holds the honour to become the first Asian American president of an Ivy League institution.

• He was named the world's 50th most powerful person by Forbes Magazine's List of The World's Most Powerful People in 2013.

World Economic Forum (WEF) released the Global Competitiveness Report (GCR) 2016-2017. The report assesses the competitiveness landscape of 138 economies.

The 2016-17 report comes out in the context of persistent slow growth and a near-term outlook that is fraught with renewed uncertainty fueled by continued geopolitical turmoil, financial market fragility, and sustained high debt levels in emerging markets.

Despite unorthodox monetary policy, global GDP growth has fallen from levels of 4.4 percent in 2010 to 2.5 percent in 2015. This fall in growth reflects not only the productivity slowdown documented in 2015-16 Report, which has continued during 2016, but also what now seems like a long-term downward trend in investment rates.

Highlights of the report

• Switzerland, Singapore and the US remain as the world's most competitive economies.

• China ranks 28 in the index.

• Among the other BRICS nations, Russia is ranked 43rd, South Africa is at 47 and Brazil at 81.

• There were no newcomers to its 2016-2017 top 10, though the order of some of the leading countries shifted in its Global Competitiveness Report.

The report highlights that for second consecutive year, India has jumped 16 places in the GCI report to occupy the 39th spot. In 2015-16 GCI report, India was placed at 55th position as compared to 71st rank in 2014-15 report.

In the report, India showed biggest improvement in rankings as its competitiveness improved on several fronts including efficiency in goods market, business sophistication and innovation.

The report said, due to improved monetary and fiscal policies, as well as lower oil prices, the Indian economy has stabilised and now boasts the highest growth among G20 countries.

It said, recent reform efforts have concentrated on improving public institutions, opening the economy to foreign investors and international trade and increasing transparency in the financial system. The report also said that India still needs to cover a lot of ground in the areas like labour, financial market, tax regulations, manufacturing, infrastructure and technological readiness.

Background The Global Competitiveness Report’s competitiveness ranking is based on the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), which was introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2004. Defining competitiveness as the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country, GCI scores are calculated by drawing together country-level data covering 12 categories – the pillars of competitiveness – that collectively make up a comprehensive picture of a country’s competitiveness.

The Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 unveiled the Official Emblem for the event. The FIFA U-17 World Cup will be India’s first international football event.

The FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 will be held in six venues across the country during October 2017.

The emblem of the first-ever FIFA tournament in India was designed as a celebration of the country’s richness and diversity of cultures. The logo includes elements of the Indian Ocean, the banyan tree, the kite and the starburst, which is an interpretation of the Ashoka Chakra, an integral part of the national identity.

Each of the elements has been selected for its deep significance in the culture of the country.

Key highlights of the emblem

• The Indian Ocean that serves as the base of the emblem is an integral part of the subcontinent.

• The banyan tree is the national tree of India, deeply rooted in the culture and ethos of India.

• The kite is the symbol of freedom and fun. Popular across the country, it represents the soaring aspirations of India’s young and vibrant democracy.

• The starburst that sits on the top of the emblem evokes festivity and celebration.

• Shaped like the FIFA U-17 World Cup trophy, the emblem combines the global look of the beautiful game with a quintessentially Indian feel.

About FIFA U-17 World Cup

• The FIFA U-17 World Cup is the world championship of association football for male players under the age of 17.

• It is organized by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

• The FIFA U-17 World Championship is a competition that was inspired by the Lion City Cup that was created by the Football Association of Singapore in 1977.

• It began as a competition for players under the age of 16 with the age limit raised to 17 from the 1991 edition onwards.

The Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) announced that the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has become the first airport in the Asia-Pacific region to achieve carbon neutral status.

DIAL is a GMR Group-led consortium which manages and operates IGI airport.

The announcement on the carbon neutral status was made by Airports Council International (ACI) during the Airport Carbon Accreditation certificate presentation ceremony held in Montreal, Canada.

The Airport Carbon Accreditation has upgraded Delhi Airport to ‘Level 3+, Neutrality’, which is the highest level of achievement available to airports across the world.

What is carbon neutrality?

• Carbon neutrality, or a net zero carbon footprint, occurs when the net carbon emissions over an entire year is zero. This means the airport absorbs or offsets the same amount of emission that was generated.

• It is used in the context of carbon dioxide releasing processes associated with transportation, energy production, and industrial processes such as production of carbon neutral fuel.